Intimate partner violence and depression in a population-based sample of women: can social support help?

Data from the 2006 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System in Nevada was analyzed to determine whether social support is independently associated with depression in a population-based sample of women with a history of intimate partner violence (IPV). More than a quarter (27%) of the women who were randomly chosen to participate in the survey reported lifetime IPV (n = 472). Twenty-four percent of abused women were categorized as currently depressed according to the eight-item Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ). Abused women who reported low social support, adjusted odds ratio (AOR) = 4.95, 95% CI (1.69-14.49), or moderate social support, AOR = 2.71, 95% CI (1.00-7.33), were more likely to be depressed than women who reported high levels of social support. Other independent risk factors for depression included younger age, AOR = 5.36, 95% CI (1.36-25.39); low education (less than high school), AOR = 12.55, 95% CI (2.78-56.72); fair or poor perceived health status, AOR = 3.72, 95% CI (1.39-9.87); being overweight or obese, AOR = 3.21, 95% CI (1.26-8.19); having experienced sexual IPV, AOR = 4.95, 95% CI (1.08-22.74); and having experienced both physical and sexual IPV, AOR = 4.54, 95% CI (2.07-9.99). There is an urgent need for routine screening for IPV and depression in clinic and community settings. Interventions that target younger women who experience IPV and aim to decrease depression in this vulnerable population are likely to be most effective if they promote social support, increase education opportunities, and support healthy weight loss behaviors.